Yale psychologist John Bargh: ‘Politicians want us to be fearful. They’re manipulating us for their own interest'

Don ’t make the mistake of thinking you have free will – a book by a US academic has analysed the unconscious, evolutionary instincts driving modern society and the results are a chilling indictment on how far we are yet to comeAs the year ’s end draws near, many of us look back and reflect on what we got right and got wrong during the past 12 months. For some, this will be a less agreeable experience than for others, but however you feel about your behaviour in 2017, you will almost certainly assume that the choices you made were y our own.You could not, according to John Bargh, be more wrong. The Yale psychologist has just written a book,Before You Know It, about the eye-opening extent to which our actions are dictated by forces within us to which we are almost entirely oblivious. Who knew, for example, that we feel less hostile to people different to ourselves after washing our hands? Or that the reason why you ’re feeling so friendly is the cup of piping hot coffee you are holding? Or that parents who want to encourage their children to be generous will have more success by turning the room temperature up than by telling them to share? Bargh’s book, asMalcolm Gladwell puts it, “moves our understanding of the mysteries of human behaviour one giant step forward” – not least in helping make sense of some of the big stories of 2017.Continue reading...

Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - December 8, 2017 Category: Science Authors: Decca Aitkenhead Tags: Psychology Evolution Science Biology Philosophy World news Society Race issues Sexual harassment Equal pay Gender Source Type: news